Advanced Offense - Wingman/Corner Kick

This offense works great on corner kicks or kick-ins close to the goal. It is by far our most copied play, with several teams going on to win nationals using this play as a staple. Normally, on corner kicks, teams try to kick it to another player who deflects or heads the ball into the goal, which works about one in twenty times. The wingman play, when you learn how to run it (and if your players have good touch), scores 50% of the time or more. It isn’t uncommon for this play to score several goals in a game. It also looks really good.

The set up is similar to the kick in (switch) play in that a player is on the ball, another by the sideline with the other forward in the middle of the field. The difference is that the two players by the ball (near the corner) are closer, roughly 10 feet apart, and they should be your best touch players, while the player on the other side of the field should actually stand far away in the midfield center circle.

1) The main play is for the player in the corner to pass the ball to the player on the side line. From this position, the side line player will attack the first defender; meanwhile the corner player will be moving down the end line, toward the goal, and the player in the middle of the field will also begin his run toward the goal. When the first opponent pushes up to stop, simply pass to your end line player who will dribble down the line and have three options against their last defender. Because all of your players are closing in on the goal, the end line player can either: a) pass the ball back to the player who had come from the sideline, in essence a give and go; b) pass the ball to the player who ran in from the midfield; or, c) if the defender tries to block the pass, simply shoot the ball directly into the goal.

2) If, after the initial pass out of the corner, the defender rushes in and tries to block any pass back to the end line runner, simply dribble around the defender. Again, your player will have three options against the last defender of passing off to either of the two players or shooting the ball in the goal.

3) If on the initial pass, or if they send everyone to stop this play, your player in the center circle should see this and make a run toward the goal. Simply pass to space in front of this player for a redirect into the goal, in essence, a normal corner kick play.

All seven of these options have produced goals for us; and you don't have to wait until a corner kick to use this play as any kick close to the corner will work too.